History of St. Brigid's Parish & School

St. Brigid's School & Church Stillorgan 1859

There has been a school connected to the Parish of St. Brigid's, Stillorgan, since at least the beginning of the 19th Century and possibly in the 17th and 18th Centuries. Most of the records of  the Parish ; and therefore school were destroyed in the fire in the Four Courts in 1922.

The church was rebuilt between 1706 and 1712. However , no resident clergyman was appointed and the Church again fell into disrepair. As the parishes of Stillorgan and Kilmacud were served from Monkstown and given the charge of a separate curate, It was restored in 1760. The Dean of Christ Church Cathedral in 1764 appointed the Reverend Beather King to St. Brigid's.

It is from this date of the appointment of Reverend King (Incumbent 1764 - 1785) that we assume a school was almost certainly built.

' King showed much vigour in his charge of the cure, he erected a Glebe House on land , which belonged to Christchurch Cathedral, in Newtown Park Avenue, and his church was sereral times chosen by the Bishops for the purpose of ordination services.

The infant school was conducted in a premises to this glebe, although it later (in the 19th century) moved to the schoolhouse adjacent to the church. King was succeeded by Reverend Edward Beatty (Incumbent 1785-1815), during whose Incumbency the tower and north aisle were added to the church (completed in 1812). One could surmise that it was around time that the schoolhouse, yard and out-offices were improved. The first specific mention of the school was by John D'Alton in his History of County Dublin (1836) at which time the school was obviously well established.

The New St. Brigid's School

The new School Building include GP room , yard and play ground was built in 1985.  This new campus was required as St. Brigid's was bursting at the seams. The campus includes the St. Brigid's National School, St. Brigid's Play School and Parish Centre.